WELL / AWARE SHOW 004 | Adina Grigore of S.W. Basics

I’m so honored to have Adina Grigore on the show today — I fell in love with her minimalist, less-is-more approach to skin care immediately after reading the back story of her company, S.W. Basics. 2015 is a banner year for Adina and S-Dubs, with the release of her first book, Skin Cleanse, and a contract with Target(!), which is a huge deal because it’s more than just a contract, it’s a sign that big box companies are really starting to respond to market demand for products that are better for you, better for the environment, better for the people making them. S.W. Basics is a homegrown company with roots in Brooklyn as the name implies, that makes skincare products with organic, fair trade and locally sourced ingredients you’re more likely to find in your kitchen than a chemistry lab.

Interestingly enough, Adina’s not an entrepreneur by trade but a former dancer who loved being on stage. That’s actually why she came to New York in the first place, to dance, but she quickly figured out that she didn’t want to pursue it full time. The disciplined practice and skill set she developed as a dancer helped shape the company — as you’ll hear in the podcast, S.W. Basics wasn’t an overnight success and she credits her success (she hesitates to even call it that!) to having the discipline to stick with it. Her story is so honest — and is a must-listen for anyone interested in starting their own thing or who’s into clean beauty.

Adina’s wholesome approach is informed by her own complicated history with skin ailments. She suffered terrible rashes and itchy, patchy flaky skin for years. Instead of getting to the root of the issue, doctors would prescribe another cream, ointment or pill to dull her symptoms. After seeing them worsen over time, she decided one day she’d had enough. She completely abandoned her routine and used absolutely nothing, a bold move. This is the fascinating part — in just a few days, she noticed an improvement. From there, she discovered how to care for her own skin using wholesome ingredients in the kitchen and found through workshops she taught as a personal trainer that others were interested, too.

S.W. Basics, much like WANT and a couple of my favorite food philosophies, Women, Food and Desire and Woman Code (please look past the pink, I promise there are valuable lessons in both), differentiates itself because it sets out to help us optimize not just skin, but lifestyle. Good skin is a by-product of a healthy lifestyle, it makes complete sense. They’re not selling a product based on our insecurities (minimalist pores! And yes, I actually bought this… no, it doesn’t work) or desired outcome (younger skin in 30 days!), but a product that’s made honestly, sustainably and with ingredients that won’t harm us. Not every product will be for you and that’s ok by Adina. Part of the reason each product has five ingredients or less is to f...